AXA launches policies through broker channel as Flood Re marks anniversary

Industry giant AXA will launch live intermediated Flood Re policies as the world-first scheme marks its first year of improving the availability of insurance for flood-risk communities.

 

The company has partnered with insurance software house SSP to deliver Flood Re policies through the broker channel. The firms will offer at-risk policyholders affordable premiums and lower excesses through the intermediated market.

 

SSP connects to the Flood Re Property Data Hub to capture the council tax band and other relevant risk data. This is fed into the tech firm’s centralised rating, pricing and quotation solution, enabling the Flood Re premium to be considered with other risk factors in determining the overall home insurance price AXA provides to each customer.

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“By working with SSP, Flood Re-backed policies will be more widely available for customers who insure their homes through a broker,” said Carolyn Scott, head of household and lifestyle underwriting at AXA.

 

Launched by the UK government, Flood Re went live on April 04, 2016, to help those living in areas at risk of flooding to access more affordable flood cover.

 

According to a study commissioned by Flood Re, only 9% of households that previously made flood claims could get quotes from two or more insurers. Now, 58% of these homes have access to 10 or more quotes.

 

The number of insurers signed up to Flood Re has also increased to 60, which represents 90% of the home insurance market, giving more choice of insurance providers to consumers in flood-prone parts of the UK.

 

Since the introduction of Flood Re, four out of five householders with previous flood claims have seen a more than 50% decrease in the price of available quotes.

 

“Flood Re has changed the insurance market so that tens of thousands of households that have been flooded can access more affordable insurance,” Flood Re chairman Mark Hoban said in a news release sent to Insurance Business.